Photographer's Note

A young and lonely lioness of Serengeti, having a peaceful rest under the shade of a tree.

She had swollen breasts (check the WS), so we thought that she had to have her cubs around, but she was lonely. Maybe away for some hunting business, but then why was she lonely? Lost her cubs and suffering in isolation? Who knows...

..............

During the safari in Serengeti, we saw almost 30 lions, alone or in large families. They do not care for or bitterly ignore human species. Maybe you know how it feels: being ignored by a cat is heartbreaking. To tell the truth, being ignored by a large cat is totally destroying. They don't seem to notice you, pretend to live their daily life even if they are surrounded by hundreds of 4x4s full of photographers with large zoom lenses. Having an eye contact is therefore one in a thousandth chance.

Serengeti is believed to hold the largest population of lions in Africa due in part to the abundance of prey species. More than 3,000 lions live in this ecosystem.

Hi Deniz,
there is plenty of beauty and majesty in this photo and the animal is superb object. Very good tight framing was an excellent choice in this case and makes one focus just on the lion. Very well captured peaceful expression and nice warm colors.
Thanks for sharing
Kamila

Selam Deniz. A close encounter and a different approach in this closely cropped and sharp image.Thank goodness they have lerant to ignore the intrusive and insensitive humans, otherwise they would be nervous wrecks. Regards. Klaudio.

Hello Deniz,
That is a marvelous shot and wonderful informative note. Wonderful majestic beast. You have captured well the menacing looks on her face. If she looks like this when she is resting wonder how it will be when she is hunting or charging. Excellent wild life shot, thanks for sharing.
Regards,
Subho

A super note Deniz and heartening to hear of such a strong lion population. In Namibia (Etosha specifically) the lions became so plentiful that the balance between predators and predatees (?) became so unbalanced that some of the lionesses were put on the 'pill' (well it was administered through a slow release darted implant) One of our local gynecologists worked with the conservation people on the project.

Your lioness here is beautiful. What a good close crop, well detailed and with lovely soft colours this an attractive wildlife shot. I'm hoping her cubs were lying quietly in the shade somewhere.

Hi Deniz,
Such a beautiful animal, and a wonderful portrait of her too. You have captured a very sad gaze here, and I can feel the lonliness that you mention in your note.
How rare to see one of these fierce creatures so close up too, the detail on her whiskers is amazing. I feel like reaching out to pet her.
Of course, I would not, but its a nice thought.

I'm glad to see you took this with a zoom lens, if you had taken this with a wide angle lens like mine you'd probably be dead right now lol

When i examine the photo closely, its amazing to see the markings on the face, the different light/darkness of the same beige/tan colors, and we can even see her eyelashes if you look closely.
very cool subject! good on ya!
cheers
craig

Photographs like this are what make hanging out on TE worthwhile and inspirational.
I love the tight framing, and the way you have captured the flow of her body wrapping around her face as she stares. Who knows what thoughts are behind those amber eyes? And then there are the colours, which bring to mind winter scenes of brown earth as it emerges in the sun from under a cover of snow.

Hello Deniz,
this is a beautiful and fascinating portrait. I like very much how you cropped this intimate view creating a dynamic composition that focuses on the expression of the magnificent animal and engages the viewer. Textures and details have been rendered with stunning precision, the play of light and the mild natural colours enhance an already fascinating impression of vividness. I like very much the workshop picture too, a wider portrait of this melancholic princess. Congratulations and thank you!
All the best, have a great evening,
Ourania

I have never been inside one of these 4x4, but I have seen them speeding around with the rangers communicating with each others via walkie-talkies when discovering an animal susceptible to excite the tourists. And indeed, when a lion is detected somewhere, lying beneath a tree, then it's instantly becoming like a police chase and dozens of vehicles are flocking in, blocking the traffic and making me mad... :-p))

You are so right in your description, concerning the nonchalant attitude from these animals, like if we were transparent... The photography we can take from these animals are not exactly like in the page of National Geographic, but somehow, it's always thrilling to see lions and other predators, even if they are sleeping in our face... Elephants, rhinos and hippos throw an eye at us at least!

I have shot some lions with a 300mm as well, but never got such a close crop, so I know for sure that you could smell this animal from your point of view... It isn't damaged, it has a nice fur, so I think you were lucky to get so close and personal!

Hello Deniz,
Your description of this lonely lioness is heartbreaking, but what a beautiful portrait (I have no other word for it; "close study" soundsso boring). You seem to be so close you could almost have reached out to pat this peaceful animal. The light is soft and evenly distributed and she rests her head perfectly behind the paw. The tight cropping enhances the feeling of intimate closeness.
Kind regards,
Gert

Hello
what are you looking for dear lion?
I hope nothin only a peaceful rest
under the shade of a tree
the details of its face are very
clear unbelievable artistic
shot bravo
have a nice evening
Costantino

Hello Deniz. Close, closer, closest. Lion is best not to close. But with the wonderful telephoto lenses is no problem. Anyway, the lion's portrait is very impressive. Overall a great shot - in the sense of the word.
Best rgds, Wolfgang.

Hello Deniz,
the contented,almost disdainful look upon the lioness belies the danger that may be just a step away.This close up shot has so much charm and impact due to a steady hand and some imaginative cropping.
Very nicely done.
Regards Les.

Hi Deniz,
I can't believe how many lions you were able to see on your trip. This is a beautiful close up and the lion appears to be unfazed indeed by the presence of people, still you did well to capture the peaceful mood of this lioness. The texture and detail is wonderful.
Regards
Wanda

Hi, I am so jealous. I am crazy about seeing wild animals in nature and you were so close! It seems you could touch these whiskers. Indeed, she looks so sad. Let's hope that the kids went with daddy for some hunting lesson. And in etosha I saw not so many lions and far away, strange that there is birth control of lions there. ...being ignored by a cat is heartbreaking..did it happen to you that after the journey your cat goes on very offended paws?

A Cat in an Empty Apartment
Wislawa Szymborska
Die? One does not do that to a cat.
Because what's a cat to do
in an empty apartment?
Climb the walls.
Caress against the furniture.
It seems that nothing has changed here,
but yet things are different.
Nothing appears to have been relocated,
yet everything has been shuffled about.
The lamp no longer burns in the evenings.

Footsteps can be heard on the stairway,
but they're not the ones.
The hand which puts the fish on the platter
is not the same one which used to do it.

Something here does not begin
at its usual time.
Something does not happen quite
as it should
Here someone was and was,
then suddenly disappeared
and now is stubbornly absent.
All the closets were peered into.
The shelves were walked through.
The rug was lifted and examined.
Even the rule about not scattering
papers was violated.

What more is to be done?
Sleep and wait.

Let him return,
at least make a token appearance.
Then he'll learn
that one shouldn't treat a cat like this.
He will be approached
as though unwillingly,
slowly,
on very offended paws.
With no spontaneous leaps or squeals at first.

very more nice to see animals in thier natural habiat than in cages as we talk about in the toucan photo. You close-up of this female lion is wonderful. I took a photo of tiger in Lujan Zoo as close as that, but yours have a suberb quality!
Thanks fore share and for the nice note too.

Fantastic close up of the lioness. Even though there were supposed to be many lions, but it is not that easy to see sometimes. You are lucky to see one and able to get such close up details of it. Excellent quality and love how at ease she is. Resting as if you were not there. She also see to be in a thoughtful mood.

Oh, this is a thing of beauty...both by the big cat herself, and your work in capturing this shot! A title which is also spot on to describe the visual. You may have not had the direct eye contact, but this is essentially just as powerful. This close-up, intimate composition shows us every detail, and although this magnificent creature cannot show facial expressions, there is a truckload of emotion felt. She looks both tender and ferocious, this is truly a remarkable image Deniz...compliments all around! Take it easy.

Good evening Deniz,
A confident face's of the lion, superbly taken the close-up.
A marvelous animal, dog-like head, and many times seeing this in a zoo - really want to pet a such, knowing how dangerous this would be, so held back...
An exceptional photo, superbly done.
Cheers,
Ike